CHAPTER 1

Stella Romilly's pov

        I stood against the wall in my room, holding up a white handkerchief in my hand. I pressed on the wound so I would reduce the bleeding but it didn't stop. Tears flowed down my cheeks as I wrapped the handkerchief around my hands to focus on other fresh wounds.I heard footsteps coming from the hallway and I froze. 

He is back. 

"Stella baby. Where are you?" his voice boomed. 

         I scrambled under my bed forgetting to clean the trail of blood that followed me. 

I shivered greatly as his footsteps neared. 

"Leave her alone!" I heard my mother yell. Shortly after, her scream followed. 

"Shut up! The neighbors will hear us."

Except they didn't. And even if they did, they would close their doors and windows because they were afraid. 

         He stumbled into my room holding a glass bottle in his hands. 

"Stella baby, where is that money you promised me huh?"

He was lying. I never promised him any money. It was a way of taking the money I was saving for college to buy stupid drugs and alcohol. 

              I held my breath and closed my mouth to prevent the sobs from coming from it. I hated my life. I hated my father. His eyes darted around before landing on the trail of blood. He staggered into the room and followed the trail of blood.. beneath the bed. He brought his face down to mine staring at me in the eye. 

"Come on out Stella baby," he ordered. I couldn't control my sobs anymore. And hell! I didn't want to come out. But I knew better than that. I slowly crawled my way out of my hiding place.

       I should have cleaned my trail of blood. He would have found me nevertheless. He always did. The bed was too small to cover my body anyway.

"Where's the money?" he asked. I stood up shakily. 

"huh?"

"I asked where the money was!" he yelled. I flinched.

"Oh, the money.."I trailed off.

"It's not where you usually keep it," he said harshly. 

             I had been saving my money at a different place ever since he took a thousand dollars from the place where I had been keeping my money. It had been a big deal for me because I worked all summer to secure that. When I complained to him about it, he beat me up so badly. I had deduced he knew where I kept the money so I started keeping it at a different place, occasionally putting a few dollars in the hiding place he knew so he wouldn't suspect a thing. But I guess it ran off because I hadn't placed some in a long while. 

"Answer my question you fool!"

"I kept it in the vase"I whispered.

"It isn't there!"

More tears flowed from my cheeks. 

"Then the money is finished "I didn't dare look him in the eye. 

"You are expected to have money at all times. And I know you have been working!" he spat on my face. 

        When I didn't answer, he held the bottle of beer in front of my face threateningly and threw it against the floor. I winced when pieces of glass pierced my skin.

" I know you have that money," he said, grabbing the head of the broken piece of the bottle. He feigned a sad expression and grabbed my face, holding the glass close to my face. 

"Why can't you help your father Stella baby?"I looked at him. 

"You are not my father," I muttered. 

He dropped his hand, scratching my face in the process. 

I walked backward towards the door slowly when he laughed. 

"You know what?" his jaw clenched as he sat his hand on his hip. 

"I don't care! That slut of a woman called your mother didn't even try to help my business! "

'Your failed business,'  I correct in my head.

When he realized what I was doing, he smiled. 

"Come here Stella baby."

"No."

He chuckled 

"Now!"

"No!" I cried. 

        I ran into the hallway, down the stairs, and rounded into the kitchen. I saw my mother unconscious on the floor. I ran to her. 

"Mom!"

I bent down to check her pulse. Thankfully, she was breathing. I turned her head to the side to see the blood trickling down her head. 

My father's steps padded behind me. 

"Well, well" he started. 

“If you don't want to end up like your mother. You might as well hand over the money."

I shifted to the other side of my palm as I stared at my mother. 

She told me to keep it no matter what happens. I shook my head. I wasn't going to give it to him. 

"Yeah?"

"No."

 I stared at him in the eye. He was going to beat me anyway. I should keep the money. 

He looked at me for a long while before giving his sinister smile. And he drew out an ax. 

              Suddenly, I was in a loop, running for my life as my father chased me down. I ran past passersby, screaming for help. It was useless. They just stared at me till I got past them. As if they hadn't seen a psycho chasing me with an ax. Ready to end me.

"You are never getting away!" he yelled behind me slowly catching up until he had caught me. He lifted his hand, ready to strike me down. I screamed for my life. Then I woke up. My eyes were wide awake, my heartbeat quickened and I was sweating profusely.

          I breathed in deeply as my eyes adjusted to my environment. I was here. 

'I am safe' I scanned the room, my eyes finally landing on the bed. I touched the empty side of the bed and wondered where he went.

          I slowly got out of bed. I heard gunshots from the park downstairs and figured out he would be there. I took my coat as I left for the park. It was dark when I stepped out and his figure immediately caught my eye. He stood on the grass shooting multiple times at the hard wood. I stood by him but he didn't seem to notice me because he kept shooting.

"Antonio," I called.

        The loud shooting stopped and he averted his gaze from the board to stare at me. I gazed at his blue eyes lovingly despite the marathon of trauma I just ran from. He didn't return the look and he turned to fully face me. Then he pointed the gun...at me. My words caught in my throat as I gasped. What was he doing?

 "A-Antonio?''My eyes become glossy.

Before I knew it, he had pulled the trigger.

BOOM!